It's a complete collection and thus, is the cheapest way to get the series on BD in the world (yes, I've calculated it in the past).

Yes "cheap" being the operative word this was one of if not the biggest shows of 2011 and all we get is a bear bones box set? Do they not know the fanbase for this show at all or what?

They do indeed know the fanbase... They know that they have a hard time breaking even on any Blu-ray that they release. They need 3000 units to shift to break even. They couldn't even get a thousand with Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood. They need numbers, not LE boxsets. It's a shame, but that is the size of the UK anime BD market.

It's a complete collection and thus, is the cheapest way to get the series on BD in the world (yes, I've calculated it in the past).

Yes "cheap" being the operative word this was one of if not the biggest shows of 2011 and all we get is a bear bones box set? Do they not know the fanbase for this show at all or what?

They do indeed know the fanbase... They know that they have a hard time breaking even on any Blu-ray that they release. They need 3000 units to shift to break even. They couldn't even get a thousand with Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood. They need numbers, not LE boxsets. It's a shame, but that is the size of the UK anime BD market.

to me that sounds like you're apologising for them so they need to sell 3K units to break even on average pricing that's £9K so they're spending 9 to 10 grand on this run they couldn't have added another 5K for LE goodies? also this whole " They need numbers, not LE boxsets" that's kinda anti consumer thinking and frankly if that's the way the UK fanbase think then that's how they know they can get away with ripping us off time and time again by not going with BD release on some shows and over charging on crap which shouldn't even be released.

the US box set isn't a fancier version it's a version that has better extras in fact if "has" extras unlike most of the sets we get and here is another reason why they'd be better off investing in LE box sets.

the collector's set the one that looks epic on a shelf and back then the only extra was the OST and that was with a price point of $200 (£123)
release#145

then a few years later they come out with price point of $50 (£30)
release#10560

So why bother buying now when you know you can get the same thing a few years later for a lot less and even worse for the distro you could pick it up on ebay for a lot less sooner.

I am still surprised that it is coming out here in the UK for that price. Unfortunately there isn't a big market over here for anime on BD and probably an even smaller one for Collectors BD sets so by making it cheaper and more "value-for-money", they might do quite well with this release.

Limited Editions, and juicy extras appeal only to a limited audience... Aniplex US can manage it because they have the customer base to make their prices pay off on small runs. They aim to sell out of everything they print before they make more.

Incidentally, are you certain that the Aniplex Madoka Magica Blu-rays are region locked? I thought the whole reason behind their pricing was that they basically repackaged the Japanese BDs, and they aren't region locked. Certainly Baccano isn't, and neither I believe is Durarara.

Anyway, Beez went with a super duper special edition, the Patlabor movies on DVD, big chunky boxes, two disc sets, with complete storyboards for each film, and a big thick making of booklet. These gold and silver boxes were gorgeous, the content was worth every penny that Beez was asking for them, about £50 apiece. They weighed about a kilo each. Beez only printed a 1000 of them, very limited.

They didn't sell. No one in the UK wanted to shell out for anime at such prices, no matter how gorgeous the sets were. Three years later, they were still selling online, and at a fraction of the cost. Beez must have made a loss on each one. Limited Editions only work if you can guarantee that they will sell out, and no company is in the business of losing money.

Anyway, I checked on Blu-ray.com, and the basic Blu-ray of Madoka Magic from Aniplex is Region Free. That's probably the same disc that you will get if you get the Limited Edition.

This list states that MM is Region Free. I think more than one person on that forum has the LE from Aniplex, so you should ask there if it is region free.

If you really love Limited Editions, then rather than waste your ire on companies selling to customer numbers too small to warrant such releases, you should target Aniplex US directly.

Ask them to keep ensuring their BDs are Region Free, and at the price they charge that shouldn't be an issue.

Also ask that instead of limiting the sale of their items to the US and Canada, that they should at least allow the easier export of those items to other English speaking countries like Australia and the UK. The whole point of such restrictions is to avoid reverse importation into Japan, and shouldn't be used to penalise the rest of the world.

A little cheaper if you buy from their US site, depending on how much commission your bank charges for currency transactions. The goods are all sent from the UK, so there probably won't be a customs charge.

A Toshiba BDX 3200 Blu-ray player can be made multi-region for Blu-ray and will set you back around £100. You'll need Australian firmware to do it, and details as to how are available for the Googling.

Travel back in time (and maybe have your gender swapped) to seven different periods of Japanese history, all from the comfort of your couch.― The history of Japanese civilization is expansive, predating the Common Era by 10,000 years (the Jomon period). There's much more ground to cover compared to what kids get in U.S. history classes in high school, which rarely cover anything before the Boston T...

Junji Ito's death-stench horror gets the deluxe treatment with a new hardcover omnibus, but the subject matter might not work for everyone.― Junji Ito is inarguably one of the masters of horror manga, utilizing both horror (physical revulsion) and terror (psychological reaction) to create gut-churning tales of the world gone mad. To a degree, he carries this out in his two-volume series Gyo from 200...

Voice actor/director/professional Dungeons & Dragons player Liam O'Brien returns to the podcast after a 5-year hiatus to discuss his roles in Fate/Zero and Sailor Moon, along with the landscape for anime voice acting now and what it's like to be Gollum.― ANNCast Episode 234: Podcastoes O'Brien Get the Flash Player to see this player. Voice actor/director/professional Dungeons & Dragons player Liam ...

If you went to an anime convention this summer or have used the internet lately, you may notice anime fans seem to have fallen in love with Steven Universe. Why? Because the show loves them right back.― If you've been to an anime convention in the past year, you've probably seen colorful, gem-studded cosplay like this filling the hallways. Photo credit links: top left, top right, bottom left, bottom...

If you've got questions for the director of the high-flying fantasy series The Pilot's Love Song, we've potentially got answers for you!― We've been given the opportunity to interview The Pilot's Love Song director Toshimasa Suzuki, and we need your help! NISA, who will be releasing the fantasy action drama The Pilot's Love Song on bluray September 22nd, asked for fan questions for Mr. Suzuki, whos...

Bee-Train's 2001 girls-with-guns classic returns on Blu-Ray, and holds up surprisingly well, despite some mediocre animation.― Not all older series deserve the Blu-Ray treatment. For some it is because the show just isn't as iconic as people might like to think, while for others it's because the quality was never BD worthy in the first place. Noir, fortunately, does hold up well enough that its tran...

Egypt Arc is JoJo in peak condition, as memorable and engaging an adventure as you could hope for. JoJo's Bizarre Adventure is back.― When we last left our heroes, they'd just arrived on the shores of Egypt, escaping the literal jaws of defeat in order to finally save Jotaro's mother. The journey there had been a lengthy and sometimes inconsistent one, with their various adventures indeed being plen...

The creator of the hit manga, recently adapted into a popular anime series, talks about her inspirations, how she got her start, and what it's like to watch your manga become a TV show.― As you might guess from the story, the main character of the story is a high school roughneck named Ryu Yamada. Yamada meets cute, quiet, and studious Urara Shiraishi, who is his complete opposite in almost every wa...